The term "coin" when used herein includes genuine coins, tokens, counterfeit coins and any other objects which may be inserted into a coin mechanism in an attempt to obtain any kind of goods or services.
Coin mechanisms are well known, which test coins as to their acceptability and, if acceptable, indicate their denomination, and which in respect of at least some of the acceptable denominations, direct them to respective coin stores, these usually being in the form of coin tubes, which may have different diameters depending upon the particular coin denomination each is intended to contain, and which are adapted to hold the coins in a vertical stack face-to-face. A coin dispensing arrangement is provided for dispensing appropriate combinations of coins from the bottoms of the stacks for the purpose of giving change or providing prizes. Additionally, there is usually a cashbox to which are directed coins which it is not intended to dispense either as change or as prizes, and also coins which might normally be directed to specific coin stores but which are accepted when the particular coin store in question is already full.
Coin mechanisms of this general type are well known and widely sold.
It is also known that there are some situations in which a particular coin denomination will need to be dispensed, in change or as a prize, sufficiently often that the coin store for that denomination is likely to become exhausted more frequently than is desirable. In an attempt to reduce the resulting problems, some coin mechanisms have been adapted to be equipped with an "auxiliary" coin tube which is individually mountable to, and demountable from, the coin mechanism manually without the use of tools. The auxiliary coin tube is pre-loaded manually with coins of the frequently-used denomination and mounted to the coin mechanism. There are then available for dispensing whatever coins may be already in, or delivered to, the main coin tube for that denomination, plus the quantity of coins of that denomination contained in the auxiliary tube. Over a period of time, nevertheless, it is still likely that the supply of coins of that denomination will become exhausted in which case the auxiliary tube will need to be manually replenished or replaced by a new one pre-loaded with a further supply of the frequently-used denomination of coin. To minimise the frequency with which the auxiliary coin tube has to be manually replenished or exchanged for a new, full, one it is desired for its capacity to be as great as possible, that is to say for its height also to be as great as possible.